Holyrood committee attacks Alister Jack for 'misunderstanding' invite to give evidence on DRS

Conservative MSP convening the committee has attacked Scotland Office and DEFRA.

Alister Jack has been branded 'disappointing' by a Holyrood committee for failing to agree to give evidence on Scotland's DRS.

Alister Jack has been attacked by a Holyrood committee chaired by a Conservative MSP over his repeated refusal to attend and give evidence on Scotland’s deposit return scheme.

The Scottish Secretary has been repeatedly invited to answer questions from the Scottish Parliament’s net zero, energy and transport committee on the scheme, angering MSPs.

He was attacked last week by Scottish Green MSP, Ross Greer, for “running scared” of scrutiny, with committee convener, Edward Mountain, criticising him for ‘misunderstanding’ the invite to give evidence.

The scheme was set to see a 20p charge added to the cost of canned and bottled drinks, which would be returned if the drink was recycled, but minister Lorna Slater had faced increasing calls to scrap it amid business criticism.

It was indefinitely paused following the decision of Mr Jack to issue a limited exemption to the Internal Market Act (IMA), which would not allow for the inclusion of glass in the scheme, causing a major constitutional row.

MSPs have sought to hear from members of the UK Government about this decision, but have repeatedly been knocked back.

In a letter to the Scottish Secretary, Mr Mountain states: “The Committee is disappointed that our invitation appears to have been misunderstood. We understand that matters of Scottish Government policy are, of course, best addressed to the Scottish Government.

“However, the Committee still wishes to discuss this matter with the UK Government to better understand how the exercise of powers in the UK Internal Markets Act 2020 has had a role in relation to the DRS.

"As those powers were exercised by the UK Government, we consider that it is the UK Government, and not the Scottish Government, that is best placed to help us understand this.

"We appreciate that the interaction of the 2020 Act with devolved powers is a new, complex and developing area for devolved Parliaments to have to grapple with, and we want to better understand the factors that are in play.

"We can only do so by hearing from both governments.”

The letter also states that the committee believes intergovernmental relations around the deposit return scheme require “further scrutiny”, adding that MSPs would find it “difficult” to understand the issues at play without hearing from the UK Government.

The letter continues: “I’m sure you’ll appreciate that it is difficult for the Committee to understand the intergovernmental relations at play without hearing from both Governments, and as a Committee we unanimously agreed it was imperative to ensure the UK Government had an opportunity to explain its role, rather than relying solely on the testimony of the Scottish Government.

"We’d be particularly interested in discussing how the Resources and Waste Common Framework was utilised in this context and any lessons to be learned in regard to that. Again, this is something the Committee would find it impossible to consider even-handedly without having heard the views of both Governments.

“As I previously highlighted, the difficulties around the DRS are a matter of great public interest and concern in Scotland. We would therefore like to ensure robust scrutiny is conducted.

"It would therefore be appreciated if the UK Government could make time to appear before the Committee to allow it to understand precisely what has led to the current state of affairs, and how things will progress from this point to ensure no further negative impact.”

A UK Government spokesperson said: "We welcome the Scottish Parliament's Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee interest in the Scottish Government's paused Deposit Return Scheme - and about how a UK-wide DRS could work in practice. We continue to work with the Scottish Government, and the other devolved administrations, to develop an approach to making DRSs across the UK interoperable. We will update stakeholders, including the committee, as plans develop.

"The UK Government remains unwavering in its commitment to improving the environment, while also upholding the UK’s internal market. The Scottish Government paused its DRS so that it starts at the same time as the UK Government’s scheme. Schemes need to be interoperable across the whole of the UK, to provide a simple and effective system for businesses and consumers."